Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to sensor systems and processes, and in particular for sensing items stored in storage units and performing related automated processes.
Description of the Related Art
Perishable items are often stored in refrigerated storage units, such as refrigerators. Such perishable items often have expiration dates or “best used by dates” printed thereon. However, because perishable items are often densely packed into a refrigerated storage unit, and because the expiration dates are sometimes faintly or poorly printed, users often are not able to conveniently monitor the expiration dates. Hence, items are often retained in the refrigerated storage unit past their expiration date, taking up valuable storage space. In addition, because the user is often unaware of when an item has reached its expiration date, the user often does not replace the expired item in a timely fashion.